Elk River
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2007 Elk River Baseball
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Umpires
Gentlemen,
 
Please forward this information on to your coaches.  This must also get to the travel coaches.   This is causing our umpires problems.  Coaches adamantly disagreeing with a correct interpretation of a rule is, I'm sure you all agree, not good.  
 
I have heard that people think that ball players must slide.  I am not sure of the circumstances surrounding this misunderstanding, but it basically stems from the fact that the knowledge most people possess of the rules of baseball start, and end, with three outs to an inning, three strikes and you're out, four balls and you walk.
 
At the house and travel levels we play by National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS,high school) rules.  There have been some modifications to these rules based upon level of play both by us and by MYAS.  The modifications made to the slide rule range from not allowing head first sliding at home plate at some levels to not allowing head first sliding at all at any base except when diving back to a base to avoid being picked off or doubled up on an appeal play. 
 
The high school slide rule DOES NOT require sliding.  The HS slide rule does put the onus on the runner to avoid contact, if possible, although there are some instances where contact will occur and there is nothing that can be done.  This rule is in place to prevent collisions, injuries and promote fair play.  The HS slide rule gives a runner three choices: slide, give himself up, or turn around and run the other way.  When sliding, the runner must go directly to the bag with feet below the knee level of the fielder.  Whether or not a slide is legal or illegal is solely up to the umpire's discretion.  This is a judgement call that is not open to debate or negotiation.  Another sticky point is at second base with a possible double play.  Here the runner must either slide or clear the base path in order to allow the fielder to complete the double play.  If sliding, the runner must slide directly to the base, feet below the knees of the fielder and he cannot overslide the base.  Hard slides are allowed, but if that results in oversliding the base, it becomes an illegal slide.  Illegal slides typically fit under the category of offensive interference and result in the offending player being called out.  At second base, offensive interference ALWAYS results in the double play being awarded.  At other bases additional outs may be called if, in the judgement of the umpire, those outs would have been recorded had the interference not occurred.  At second base, if the runner remains standing up, (remember he is not required to slide) and in the base path he does run the risk of creating a situation that could result in a double play being called due to interference.  Again, this is a judgement call on the part of the umpire as to whether or not the runner interfered with the throw to first.  A runner who remains standing and gets hit by the relay from second to first has violated the slide rule, caused interference, and the result is  an automatic double play.
 
I hope this helps everyone to further their understanding of this particular rule and helps to reduce some conflict.



 


 

"Through An Umpire's Eyes"

Please feel free to share this with your local teams & umpires. It's a great way to keep what we do in "perspective".

Donald Jensen was struck in the head by a thrown bat while umpiring a Little League game in Terre Haute, Indiana. He continued to work the game, but later that evening was placed in the hospital by a doctor. While being kept overnight for observation, Jensen wrote the following letter:

Dear Parent of a Little Leaguer:

I'm an umpire. I don't do it for a living, but only on Saturdays and Sundays for fun. I've played the game, coached it and watched it. But somehow, nothing takes the place of umpiring. Maybe it's because I feel that deep down I'm providing a fair chance for all the kids to play the game without disagreements and arguments.

With all the fun I've had, there is still something that bothers me about my job. Some of you folks don't understand why I'm here. Some of you feel I'm there to exert authority over your son. For that reason, you often yell at me when I make a mistake, or encourage your son to say things that hurt my feelings. How many of you really understand that I try to be perfect? I try not to make a mistake. I don't want your son to feel he got a bad deal from an umpire. Yet no matter how hard I try, I can't be perfect. I counted the number of calls I made in a six-inning game today. The total number of decisions, whether on balls and strikes or safe and outs, was 146. I tried my best to get them all right, but I'm sure I missed some. When I figured out my percentage on paper, I could have missed eight calls today and still gotten about 95 percent of the calls right. In most occupations that percentage would be considered excellent. If I were in school, that grade would receive an A for sure.

But your demands are higher than that. Let me tell you more about my game today. There was one real close call that ended the game. A runner for the home team was trying to steal the plate on a passed ball. The catcher chased the ball down and threw to the pitcher covering the plate. The pitcher made the tag and I called the runner out. As I was getting my equipment to leave, I overheard one of the parents comment, "It's too bad the kids have to lose games because of rotten umpires. That was one of the lousiest calls I've ever seen." Later, at the concession stand, a couple of kids were telling their friends, "Boy, the umpires were lousy today. They lost the game for us." I felt just terrible when I got home. Here was a group of kids who had made a lot of mistakes which had cost them a number of runs.

The purpose of Little League is to teach baseball skills to young men. Obviously, a team which does not play well in a given game, yet is given the opportunity to blame that loss on an umpire for one call or two, is being given the chance to take all responsibility for the loss from their shoulders. A parent or adult leader who permits the younger player to blame his failures on an umpire, regardless of the quality of that umpire, is doing the worst kind of injustice to that youngster. Rather than learning responsibility, such an attitude is fostering an improper outlook toward the ideals of the game itself. This irresponsibility is bound to carry over to future years.

As I sit here writing this letter, I am no longer as upset as I was this afternoon, I wanted to quit umpiring, but fortunately, my wife reminded me of another situation that occurred last week. I was umpiring behind the plate for a pitcher who pantomimed his displeasure at any call on a borderline pitch that was not in his team's favor. One could sense that he wanted the crowd to realize that he was a fine, talented player who was doing his best to get along, but that I was a black-hearted villain who was working against him. The kid continued acting like this for two innings, while at the same time yelling at his own players, who dared to make a mistake. For two innings the manager watched this. When the kid returned to the dugout to bat in the top of the third, the manager called him aside. In a voice loud enough that I was able to overhear, the lecture went like this: "Listen son, it is time you mike a decision. You can be an umpire, an actor, or a pitcher. But you can only be one at a time when you are playing for me. Right now it is your job to pitch. And, you are basically doing a lousy job. Leave the acting to actors, the umpiring to the umpires, or you won't do any pitching here. Now what is it going to be?"

Needless to say, the kid chose the pitching route and went on to win the game. When the game was over the kid followed me to my car. Fighting his hardest to keep back the tears he apologized for his actions and thanked me for umpiring his game. He said he had learned a lesson that he would never forget.

I can't help but wonder how many more fine young men are missing their chance to develop into outstanding ball players because their parents encourage them to spend time umpiring.

The following morning Donald Jensen died of a brain concussion.

From the Washington Journal of Health, Physical Education, and Recreation, spring 1975.

For more information on character building, please follow this link to the Character Counts website.  Look for the Six Pillars of Character   Six Pillars
Frequently Asked Questions and Myths.  

FOUL-TIP RULE MYTH
There is nothing foul about a foul-tip. If the ball nicks the bat and goes sharp and direct to the catcher's hand or glove and is caught, this is a foul-tip by definition. A foul-tip is a strike and the ball is alive. It is the same as a swing-and-miss. If the ball is not caught, it is a foul ball. If the nicked pitch first hits the catcher somewhere other than the hand or glove, it is not a foul-tip, it is a foul ball.

Referee article - 7-2004, Why You Miss Pitches - and How to Avoid It
 
No matter how good the umpires are no one will perceive them as being good umpires if the teams play poorly.  Have you ever heard of an umpire who was credited with turning a sloppy game into a well-played contest via his call of balls and strikes?  The games that are considered the better games are generally low-scoring affairs.
        Nonetheless the plate umpire, to a certain degree, can influence how a particular game is played by the way he calls pitches.  Every umpire has had games in which pitchers had command of three pitches:  in the dirt, above the batter's head and in the opposite batter's box.  There isn't much that can be done about those games, but hopefully they are the exception.  The more strikes that are called early in the game, the greater tendency that batters will swing.  Here are tips for optimizing the strike zone.  
        One of the essentials to being a good plate umpire is sound positioning.  There are three accepted plate stances:  box, scissors and knee.  In the amateur world, there are many others, invented and incorrectly adopted by ill-informed or poorly trained umpires.  There are four fundamentals that will enhance success.
        Lateral position.  The "slot" has been determined to be the best overall position to see the entire strike zone pitch to pitch, regardless of what stance the batter and catcher take.  The slot is roughly halfway between the space between the batter and the catcher.  Jim Evans says it is halfway between the batter and the inside shoulder of the catcher and others say it is halfway between the batter and the catcher's inside ear.  If the catcher takes a position centered on the plate, a good slot position may be with the umpire's eyes directly in line with the inside edge of the plate.  From the slot, the plate umpire can watch the pitch all the way into the catcher's mitt without moving his head.  It is by no means a perfect position for all situations, but any other position will cause more problems.  It also facilitates taking the same position pitch after pitch; an essential ingredient of consistency.
        Head height.  The chin must be above the catcher's head (top of his head).  If the umpire sets up lower, the risk is run of the catcher blocking out the lower part of the zone.  If an umpire is having trouble calling low pitches, setting up higher is better, not lower.
        Stability.  Stability is important for comfort and for consistency.  Your head must stay still until you are ready to make the call.  Calling pitches with a bobbing head is like taking pictures with a moving camera.  Head movement will negatively affect consistency on high speed and quality breaking balls.  Professional umpires rarely move their head and when they do it's a ball.  The head unconsciously follows the pitch out of the strike zone.
        Timing.  Consistent time will help establish a rhythm.  Each umpire must develop a routine for getting into a final stance, calling the pitch and coming out of the stance.  Relaxing between pitches is part of the routine.  If an umpire gets set too soon, he will tire quickly.  Getting set too late contributes to missing pitches because the head will be moving while the pitch is en route.  
        When the pitcher engages the rubber, the umpire should go to a "ready" position.  That is a semi-relaxed, preliminary position that facilitates getting into the "set" position.  The precise moment an umpire actually gets set (assuming the position from which the pitch is called) is a matter of personal preference.  It will vary depending on the pitcher's mannerisms and position.
        The strike zone.  The three baseball codes have found three different ways to essentially define the same strike zone.  The pro rules state, "The strike zone is that area over home plate the upper limit of which is a horizontal line at the midpoint between the top of the shoulders and the top of the uniform pants."  The lower limit is a line at the hollow beneath the kneecap.  NFHS says the lower end of the strike zone is simply "the knees," while NCAA uses, "the bottom of the kneecaps."  NFHS and NCAA specify those positions are when the batter assumes a natural stance, but the pro rule says to determine it from "the batter's stance when he prepares to swing at a pitch."
        Despite the precise definitions, the strike zone becomes whatever can be called without massive complaining.  With that, every umpire's zone is slightly different.
        Does the "area over home plate" include the black edging around the plate?  Technically no, but the best umpires include it.  How about the top of the zone?  Some umpires still believe the midpoint between the top of the shoulders and the belt is the navel.  Most coaches have learned to accept high strikes if they are consistently called.
        The bottom of the zone has the greatest potential for error.  An umpire sets up with his eyes closest to the top, inside portion of the zone.  The outside and the bottom of the zone are the farthest away.  Umpires cannot only look good with a wide zone, but also with slight inconsistency on the outside.  The ins and outs of the zone simply cannot be discerned from the dugout.  However, coaches get a clear view of the height that is being called (some would say better view).  Pitches below the knee are not hittable and calling them strikes will get an umpire in trouble.
        The count.  The next section carries a warning.  Please do not infer there are pitches on which you can relax.  Every pitch is important, but missing certain pitches can have greater consequences.  The 3-2 pitch is clearly the most critical.  If the batter doesn't swing, your call will determine whether he becomes a runner or is out.
        The more attention the game garners, the more visible those calls become.  When the pitch is a "decision pitch" - one that is so close it requires extreme concentration and a tough decision on the part of the umpire - the intensity is ramped up even more.  
        The fourth inning of game three of the 2003 World Series between the Marlins and the Yankees included two 3-2 pitches that illustrate that point.
        The Yankees were trailing at the time, 1-1.  Derek Jeter broke up Josh Beckett's no-hitter with a double.  Then Jason Giambi ran the count to 3-2.  Beckett aimed a braking ball at the outside corner - a decision pitch, to be sure - that plate umpire Gary Darling called ball four.  Giambi trotted down to first base.
        Three batters later, the bases were loaded.  Jorge Posada was at the plate.  On the seventh pitch, Beckett threw a fastball he hoped would nip the outside corner, but Darling called it ball three.  On 3-2, Beckett tried to throw a fastball to the lower part of the strike zone.  But he missed, Darling's right arm never moved and the Yankees had tied the game.  They eventually won, 6-1.
        At the time Darling was making those calls, Beckett didn't quite look like the president of the Gary Darling Fan Club, mouthing a visible obscenity on camera on his way to the dugout.  But afterward, Beckett acknowledged to ESPN's Jayson Stark that all three of the pitches could have gone either way.
        "Yeah, I got some tough calls," Beckett said.  "But the way I look at the umpires, their job is just as hard as mine is.  I never, ever say anything bad about umpires.  I've got to throw every pitch.  He's got to call every pitch.  ... I just throw the pitches.  If he doesn't call them strikes, he doesn't call them strikes.
        "Guys who complain about umpires are excuse-makers," Beckett said.  "And I'm not an excuse-maker."
        Every umpire likely wishes pitchers (or hitters, if a call on a decision pitch favors a pitcher) would take the same high road that Beckett traveled that night.  It's also important to note that the Yankees were equally certain Darling got the calls right.  As any umpire knows, that's the rub that comes with the job:  Fifty percent of the people are going to be sure you're 100% wrong 50% of the time.
        A full count is perceived as a crucial situation, but so is a 2-0 pitch.  There's a big difference between a 2-1 count - considered an "even" count and a 3-0 count.  It's a great hitter's count.  Many pitchers become preoccupied with avoiding the walk and tend to strive for the middle of the plate.
        A few words about the 3-0 count:  There is no automatic strike and expanding the strike zone for that type of pitch will cause trouble.
        To begin with, there should be a liberal strike zone for all pitches, but the umpire who displays consistency is on solid ground.  Everyone talks about consistency and the best umpires can deliver it.  If you wouldn't strike the batter out on a certain pitch, then don't call it a strike on a 3-0 count.  Keep the same zone regardless of the count, the inning, or the game situation, and you can't go wrong.
        Psychology.  Major league umpires miss anywhere from one to three pitches per game.  Amateur umpires, no matter how good they are, can be expected to miss a few more than that.  It's tough to beat the consistency developed from working the plate every other day for 10 years in the minor leagues.
        Accept the fact pitches will be missed and learn to live with it.  Dwelling on a missed pitch is prone to causing additional missed pitches.
        Knuckle down on two-strike counts.  Take a doubleheader with two different plate umpires.  Let's say each misses three pitchers per game.  If the first umpire misses the pitches on two-strike counts and calls out three batters, while the other misses all his pitches on the first pitch to batters, the latter will be perceived as the better umpire.